Early detection of infectious diseases is necessary to control their spread, to direct therapy, and to improve patient outcomes. For example, early and accurate identification of outbreaks of deadly pathogens can prevent the occurrence of global pandemics. Currently many diagnostic methods for bloodstream infections caused by, for example, viruses (including Ebola and related filoviruses) or drug-resistant bacteria, require at least 24 hours or longer to perform. There is a need in the art for a method to minimize the time needed to detect the presence of a pathogen in an individual's sample. The goal is to detect the pathogen while it is still present at very low concentrations, if possible, before clinical symptoms are evident. Early intervention may then minimize the intensity and duration of the infection thereby reducing morbidity and mortality.
In some cases, the presence of cells such as blood cells (e.g., red blood cells and white blood cells) in the sample reduces the specificity and sensitivity of the assay method. At present, there exists no means for rapid isolation and collection of an infectious pathogen from a biological sample such that the pathogen can be identified or analyzed when present at very low concentration. In addition, there is a need in the art for technologies that can improve the sensitivity of existing diagnostic methods for detecting pathogens. The present invention satisfies these and other needs.